Open evening and mornings at Harris Garrard Academy, Sept and Oct 2019. See all four dates at https://t.co/UmHiNkUl8y. First one, Tues 1 Oct, 5.30pm. Our teachers and students look forward to welcoming you! https://t.co/AUQNQvABC6

Our students are celebrating some excellent results today! “I want to congratulate our Year 11 on these fantastic results, which indicate the enormous progress they have made during their secondary education." Mr Everitt, Executive Principal. Find out more https://t.co/rEZl4950vWhttps://t.co/uQcbH7UKyr

Don't forget our school is OPEN to students and families tomorrow and every Weds during the holiday (9am to 1pm) if you'd like to chat to our staff about anything on your mind (tea and biscuits on offer)! Find out more https://t.co/YLy2hVvXqr

Students, parents, carers... got something on your mind? Kim and Lisa are in school today (9am to 1pm) so why not pop along and say hello. We're OPEN every Weds morning during the holidays for anyone in our community who wants a 'listening ear' (and maybe tea and biscuits!) https://t.co/5CCupY4Eie

Want to talk someone? Need support? Don't forget the school is OPEN to all students and parents/carers tomorrow and every Weds during the holiday (9am to 1pm). Everyone welcome. Tea waiting! Find out more https://t.co/YLy2hVvXqr

Happy holidays everyone! But don't forget we are OPEN to students and families every Weds during the holiday (9am to 1pm) if you need to speak to someone. Come along and meet some staff for support, a chat and maybe a cup of tea! Find out more https://t.co/YLy2hVvXqr

Come to our 'Listening Ear' drop-in sessions, every Wed (9am to 1pm), from 31st July until 28th Aug. It means we're OPEN during the Summer holidays if you need to speak to someone, meet some staff or just have a chat and a cup of tea! All our families and students very welcome!

Character Days

The academy has a thoughtful and ambitiouscurriculum that is designed to give all pupils the knowledge and cultural capital they need to become responsible, effective and active citizens.

To help achieve this ambition, during the secondary phase we run six Character Days during the academic year.

On these six days, pupils are not in their normal timetabled lessons, but have the chance to experience different activities and trips. These six Character Days are held across all year groups (years 7 to 13), with one every half term, and with common curriculum aims and themes on each day.

One of the academy’s mantras is ‘Character is Key’. This is constantly referred to by staff and is reiterated regularly during assemblies and throughout Character Days. Through the half-termly Character Days students are supported to become confident, resilient and independent.

How we implement our Character Days

The outline for our Character Days in 2019-20 is below. These days have been mapped out to include PSHE, RSE, SMSC, and careers education/guidance, with a particular focus on character, as well as planned opportunities for school trips.

How we measure their impact

The Character Day programme will be evaluated through pupil surveys, which are already part of the academy’s procedures. We reviewed last year's surveys for careers education and made sure the topics students wanted to learn about were included, as well as using contextual safeguarding from Bexley and Greenwich to inform our planning.

The Character Days have a hugely positive impact on pupils, providing skills and teaching knowledge they might not get outside the academy or within their timetabled lessons.